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Pastimes : Let's Talk About Our Feelings!!! -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Grainne who wrote (105447)	5/30/2005 4:49:34 PM
From: Ish	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 108807

Thought you might like this. Monday, May 30, 2005 Farm sees fruit in unusual picks By Chris Anderson canderson@pantagraph.com Advertisement MORTON -- Don't be surprised to see a small herd of zebra running in a pasture at John Ackerman's farm some day. The Morton farmer and his wife, Eve, have no plans to raise the striped equine, but the family clearly doesn't shy from diversification. "People ask us to grow things. The next thing you know they'll ask us to raise zebras," said Ackerman, laughing. Six years ago, the family entered the pumpkin business by accident. They began growing about 3,500 mums three years ago because a customer wanted to do one-stop fall decorating shopping at Ackerman Farms. They've also planted 1,400 apple trees in an orchard that should begin bearing fruit for sale next year. Their latest endeavor involves 2Ä acres of bright red, juicy strawberries. They've been selling prepicked and pick-your-own berries since the second week of May. The Ackermans researched growing strawberries for several years. In August, they pushed 35,000 plants into mounds of soil covered by black plastic. So far, family members and employees have picked 500 pounds of berries. Ackerman expects the plants to continue producing for several more weeks. "The learning curve is steep out here. We picked a spring with record cold temperatures to try this," said Ackerman. The plasticulture method of strawberry production was chosen primarily to have ripe fruit in May instead of June as is the case for berries grown in traditional mat rows covered in straw. The black plastic surrounding plants also prevents weed growth. Mat row strawberries typically get planted in March of one year. The first crop can be picked the following summer. Plants usually bear fruit for three to five years. While plasticulture costs more than traditional methods, Ackerman said he limited his first-year investment to plants and materials. He has relied on fellow plasticulture strawberry grower Frank Butler of Danville for advice. He rented equipment and borrowed an implement from herb farm operator Don Schertz of Lowpoint to lay down the 5-foot-wide plastic. Once the berries got planted, the field was draped with floating row covers made from white spun fibers. The row covers were removed in March. Drip tapes were installed down the center of each row to provide sufficient moisture. "With plasticulture, you are supposed to treat the plants as annuals and rip them out every year. But some people are holding them over a second year," said Ackerman. "We had to plan for this years ahead. I planted wheat so there would be no residual chemicals in the soil that might affect the berries." The Ackermans want to see how the first season goes before committing to long-term strawberry production. Mrs. Ackerman noted that the 6-year-old pumpkin venture started as "a little thing." It all started when Ackerman couldn't beat a Libby's pumpkin harvester to the field to pick up vegetables that had grown over the side of a ditch. So, the family hauled the pumpkins up to the house and displayed them along the road running in front of their farm -- U.S. 150. "People stopped and asked if they could buy pumpkins. Now we grow 130 varieties on 23 acres. It's our labor of love," said Ackerman. Diversification became the rule for the Ackermans as they increasingly struggled to make income from a small grain and cattle farm and support their four children. "The money was not there with cattle. For a while, I sold long-term health insurance, but I just wanted to farm," said Ackerman, who lives in a home designed by his grandfather. Specialty crops not only made it possible for him to farm full-time but also allowed Mrs. Ackerman to quit her off-farm job. She manages a gift shop fashioned from an old hog barn. In addition to building a successful operation, the Ackermans believe they're creating a future for their children: Carmen, 18, Alex, 16, Katie, 9, and Sam, 7. All the kids help with a variety of chores. Katie raises exotic chickens and sells the multicolored eggs to strawberry and pumpkin customers. "There's a lot of labor and management involved in this operation. If any or all of them want to come back to the farm, we want to have room for all of them," said Ackerman.